Commercials go with television like peanut butter and jelly. It is hard to find one without the presence of the other; and in the case of TV and commercials, impossible.
I believe that the majority of TV watchers feel that the commercials that interrupt their viewing time are found irksome and annoying. Soap operas are the worst culprit for this crime because just as the show starts to get remotely interesting, they go to commercials and then the viewer is stuck waiting for the rest of the information for another day.
However, since consumers dont really have to pay for TV, the commercials are necessary for networks to make money. Even though consumers get annoyed with all the commercial breaks they are hard to avoid, unless you record your shows and then fast forward through the commercials later.
It would be nice if there was a set limit of time for commericals to be playing during TV shows and if a network says "there will only be X amount of commercial time" then at least the network understands the annoyance that consumers feel with the persistent commercial interrupting the show.
TV networks may start limiting the amount of commercials and putting them at the beginning of a program, like some countries in Europe. This method will tell the consumers that if you watch these commercials, then the rest of your program will be uninterrupted.
I believe that if TV networks start doing this it would be better because consumers never really know when the commercials will be done and when the show will begin. This will increase the amount of attention paid to commericals. It will also lead to an unspoken agreement between the consumer and the network where the consumer will watch the commercials if the rest of the show is not interrupted.
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Blog #7
This semester in media lit we have studied a plethora of topics that focused on our inevitable involvement with the media, because of the media's massive influence on culture and society. Topics ranging from stereotypes, sexualization in the media, advertising, television, ext. In order to be an informed consumer it is necessary to understand how influential and widespread the media's influence is in our society.
Every aspect of American culture is somewhat influenced by the media. The influence of media is like air, it is always around us, but cant always be seen/recognized. Media impacts our schools, clothes, cars, and it is even in our homes.
Stereotypes are egged on by the media as is the sexualization of women. Many people feel strongly on topics such as these but what people fail to realize is that not only does the media influence our actions and decisions, but what we say and do as a society influences the media's actions and decisions too. It is a continuous cycle. When we grow bored of a style of clothing for example, the media finds out and finds a new style for us to buy. TV shows change so much because of their ratings. When consumers stop watching a show, then the show goes for a new angle to try and hook us back into watching it.
So if there is one really important thing I have learned it is that the media is a powerful influencer yes, but we do have a say in what we are influenced. So if we as a society dont like something that the media is doing, once we show it then the changes will begin.
Every aspect of American culture is somewhat influenced by the media. The influence of media is like air, it is always around us, but cant always be seen/recognized. Media impacts our schools, clothes, cars, and it is even in our homes.
Stereotypes are egged on by the media as is the sexualization of women. Many people feel strongly on topics such as these but what people fail to realize is that not only does the media influence our actions and decisions, but what we say and do as a society influences the media's actions and decisions too. It is a continuous cycle. When we grow bored of a style of clothing for example, the media finds out and finds a new style for us to buy. TV shows change so much because of their ratings. When consumers stop watching a show, then the show goes for a new angle to try and hook us back into watching it.
So if there is one really important thing I have learned it is that the media is a powerful influencer yes, but we do have a say in what we are influenced. So if we as a society dont like something that the media is doing, once we show it then the changes will begin.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Blog #6
The mass involvement of the media and our culture is astounding. There doesnt seem to be an area of our lives that the media and advertising cannot influence. Now even companies are paying to have their logo and products placed in movies so that people will recognize the brand and buy the products. Twenty years ago, this was not even heard of and now you cant even go watch a movie without recognizing some company or product.
There is no doubt that product placement is effective in getting the attention of the viewers. We are constantly bombarded by different advertising campaigns from different companies, so not recognizing the logos is almost impossible.
Like I said above, product placement is effective in helping the viewer notice the products, but it doesnt make the viewer want to purchase the product because there is rarely a campaign within the movie (an exception is the movie Billy Madison, where he does an ad campaign for Subway). So the products may be recognized by consumers but they dont necessarily make the viewer desire the product the way commercials and print ads do.
Overall I find product placement amusing in movies because it shows how desperate these companies are for us to buy their products. Product placement doesnt have much of an effect on my desire to purchase; it is just another way for consumers to recognize the companies that are trying to sell to them.
There is no doubt that product placement is effective in getting the attention of the viewers. We are constantly bombarded by different advertising campaigns from different companies, so not recognizing the logos is almost impossible.
Like I said above, product placement is effective in helping the viewer notice the products, but it doesnt make the viewer want to purchase the product because there is rarely a campaign within the movie (an exception is the movie Billy Madison, where he does an ad campaign for Subway). So the products may be recognized by consumers but they dont necessarily make the viewer desire the product the way commercials and print ads do.
Overall I find product placement amusing in movies because it shows how desperate these companies are for us to buy their products. Product placement doesnt have much of an effect on my desire to purchase; it is just another way for consumers to recognize the companies that are trying to sell to them.
Friday, April 17, 2009
Blog #5
The media manages to penetrate almost every aspect of our lives. From TV to magazines, to newspapers, to radio and billboards, the media is constantly sending us a message through advertising. Over the last few days i have observed several different advertising techniques that companies have tried and tested to see if the ads are effective on the group of people they are advertising to.
A billboard on a major highway was advertising for Verizon. This billboard had the man that always says, "Can you hear me now," on it and very little text description about the product they were advertising. This image of this man has been etched into our brains so that when we see him we automatically make the connection to Verizon. This is a psuchological technique such as the one used by Pavlov and his classical conditioning theory. This is also the case with ads by Nike and other well known companies. Whenever we see or hear something that is repeated constantly, we begin to make the psychological connection to that company and the products that they sell us.
Radio commercials are another form of advertising that bombardes consumer over and over again. These advertisements vary for every station. The common ads that seems to be appearing on the radio are the ads that focus on saving money, getting jobs, and trying to find ways to benefit from the current economic state. These ads mostly focus on men, even though gender is not implied, because the majority of people that are laid off are middle aged men, therefore these radio commercials are sent at middle aged, white men. Usually these men are located in the city/suburban area because that is where the majority of the layoffs are taking place. This helps ad companies a lot because they can just figure out who listens to what radio stations, and put their ads on these stations so they can reach their target market. Decision making units for these ads are whether or not a person has a job, if they have a family to support, and if they need some extra money.
Advertising companies use many different propaganda devices that range from the weasel word to snob appeal. They also use famous people to try and get regular people to buy their products. This is a common practice for radio stations where they have a famous singer that is likely to be played on their radio station promote listening to said radio station. This is the act of a testimonial propaganda device.
As i said before, the media is a powerful and very influential aspect of everyday American life. The influence that the media can spread around cannot be escaped by people because the media penetrates every aspect of our culture and our lives. There are so many types of mediums that can be used that advertising companies can reach us in almost any way possible. And the funny thing is, we pay them to be another form of advertising. So overall, we the people, are the deciding factor on how far a company makes it.
A billboard on a major highway was advertising for Verizon. This billboard had the man that always says, "Can you hear me now," on it and very little text description about the product they were advertising. This image of this man has been etched into our brains so that when we see him we automatically make the connection to Verizon. This is a psuchological technique such as the one used by Pavlov and his classical conditioning theory. This is also the case with ads by Nike and other well known companies. Whenever we see or hear something that is repeated constantly, we begin to make the psychological connection to that company and the products that they sell us.
Radio commercials are another form of advertising that bombardes consumer over and over again. These advertisements vary for every station. The common ads that seems to be appearing on the radio are the ads that focus on saving money, getting jobs, and trying to find ways to benefit from the current economic state. These ads mostly focus on men, even though gender is not implied, because the majority of people that are laid off are middle aged men, therefore these radio commercials are sent at middle aged, white men. Usually these men are located in the city/suburban area because that is where the majority of the layoffs are taking place. This helps ad companies a lot because they can just figure out who listens to what radio stations, and put their ads on these stations so they can reach their target market. Decision making units for these ads are whether or not a person has a job, if they have a family to support, and if they need some extra money.
Advertising companies use many different propaganda devices that range from the weasel word to snob appeal. They also use famous people to try and get regular people to buy their products. This is a common practice for radio stations where they have a famous singer that is likely to be played on their radio station promote listening to said radio station. This is the act of a testimonial propaganda device.
As i said before, the media is a powerful and very influential aspect of everyday American life. The influence that the media can spread around cannot be escaped by people because the media penetrates every aspect of our culture and our lives. There are so many types of mediums that can be used that advertising companies can reach us in almost any way possible. And the funny thing is, we pay them to be another form of advertising. So overall, we the people, are the deciding factor on how far a company makes it.
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Blog #4
There are many different stereotypes of men and women throughout our society. These stereotypes inhibit the growth that could happen in our country for men and women. Common stereotypes against women are that they are "too emotional" and are meant to stay in the kitchen and do the housework. However, the stereotypes of men are slightly different, men are portrayed as unintelligent and violent in media. Stereotypes such as these can prevent opportunities in the workforce, leave negative impressions and ideas on people at work, or in school, and in politics.
The stereotype that women are "too emotional" for higher ranking jobs has limited their ability to have an opportunity to succeed, or even try, these highly qualified jobs. For example, the culture used to, and still does to a certain extent, that women belong in the home and in the kitchen. The job of a woman was to cook, clean, and take care of the family while the men went to work. That is because women were seen as "too emotional" to handle themselves in the business world. This has also transfered to politics, since the United States has still not seen a woman president. Also, at school girls are seen as easily intimidated so guys feel like they can walk all over and say they are better than girls.
The stereotype that women are "too emotional" for higher ranking jobs has limited their ability to have an opportunity to succeed, or even try, these highly qualified jobs. For example, the culture used to, and still does to a certain extent, that women belong in the home and in the kitchen. The job of a woman was to cook, clean, and take care of the family while the men went to work. That is because women were seen as "too emotional" to handle themselves in the business world. This has also transfered to politics, since the United States has still not seen a woman president. Also, at school girls are seen as easily intimidated so guys feel like they can walk all over and say they are better than girls.
The stereotypes of men are different compared to those of women. Men are seen as the hit first ask questions later, or violent, attitudes of men. This is shown in a school setting where the majority of the fights that one hears about, people automatically assume that it is guys that are having the fight. Usually it is men having the fight, but only because of the way the media has influence the men and what attitudes are acceptable for them to have. This goes into the point I made about the common stereotype of men just being unintelligent. The unintellingence comes from the media depicting that it is ok for men to hit first and ask questions later. The media has brainwashed the men of our society into thinking that this violence is ok.
The violence also is in work areas as well, especially in professional sports. Hockey fights, football fights, and baseball fights become popular events inside the sport itself. This is because the media has shown and influenced men into thinking that violence is normal and necessary to have control of a situation. Also regarding politics, war and violence has become a more and more common solution as the years have gone on. More wars have been declared in order to resolve problems rather than finding another way to come to an appropriate solution.
Therefore, our media has a very powerful influence and control over the people, and the stereotypes made against them, in our society. These stereotypes have affected our everyday lives and unless we start fighting them now, they will grow more and more influential in our schools, workforce, and politics as the years go by.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Blog #3
I chose to watch the TV show George Lopez. I enjoy watching this show because it helps me relax and laugh after a long day. There are several core values that are depicted in this show. The main core values that were expressed in this episode include achievement and success, material comfort, conformity, and youthfulness.
Achievement and success were said to be valued in this episode by Gloria, or Angie's sister. Gloria was going through a divorce and she was feeling low and not very successful because of her situation. Her father kept telling her that she was a very successful woman and she just needed to keep up her confidence in order to stay that way. This shows that success is a core value that Americans tend to want.
Material comfort was another core value that the characters wanted. Gloria consistently married rich and wealthy men and had many expensive clothes and other items that made her value material goods.
Conformity was another example of one of the depicted values. Angie was telling Gloria how she should stop going after rich, and somewhat shallow men, and try going with a more level headed guy like her husband George. This would be an example of conformity if Gloria listens to Angie and does what she said to do.
Finally, youthfulness was another example of a value depicted in this episode. It was Angie's birthday and she went through a lot of effort to look and feel young. This was shown in how she dressed, how she acted, and how she tried to look younger than her age.
These are the main values that were depicted in the show George Lopez.
Achievement and success were said to be valued in this episode by Gloria, or Angie's sister. Gloria was going through a divorce and she was feeling low and not very successful because of her situation. Her father kept telling her that she was a very successful woman and she just needed to keep up her confidence in order to stay that way. This shows that success is a core value that Americans tend to want.
Material comfort was another core value that the characters wanted. Gloria consistently married rich and wealthy men and had many expensive clothes and other items that made her value material goods.
Conformity was another example of one of the depicted values. Angie was telling Gloria how she should stop going after rich, and somewhat shallow men, and try going with a more level headed guy like her husband George. This would be an example of conformity if Gloria listens to Angie and does what she said to do.
Finally, youthfulness was another example of a value depicted in this episode. It was Angie's birthday and she went through a lot of effort to look and feel young. This was shown in how she dressed, how she acted, and how she tried to look younger than her age.
These are the main values that were depicted in the show George Lopez.
Monday, February 2, 2009
Blog #2
Regarding the media and its influence on children, it is astounding how many times a day children are interacting with media. This interaction starts at a very young age. Even when the children are babies they experience some kind of relationship with media. As they grow, so does the amount of media they are exposed to. From diapers, to toys, to TV shows. All of these things have an influence on these children's lives. The media is getting to these children at a yound age and this will help them control, or influence, the children as they grow.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Blog #1
The majority of the people I interviewed responded by saying that media was a way to stay up to date on many important events that happened. When they were asked about what events can affect the media they said political and global events will influence the media and what is reported. Also, when people were asked how the media impacts their life their responses ranged from it keeps them informed, to it influences lifestyles and perspectives. The two most commonly used forms of media that the people I interviewed use are the TV, which we all know and love, and the internet, which is used numerous times a day.
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